Pedigree chump: An X-ray of Yoda the pit bull after he gobbled up a 35cm-long (14in) back-scratcher (Picture: Caters)

It might be long, sharp and dangerous… but don’t expect Fido to care.

These X-rays show some of the most bizarre items swallowed by pets.

They were taken by vets who operated on the poorly patients.

Barking: A hunting knife is among several items taken from dog Izzy (Picture: Caters)

Among the examples are a puppy that swallowed a 30cm (12in) llama rib (yes, llama rib), two dogs who thought knives were a special dinner treat, and a mutt which was taken to the vet by a woman after it swallowed her children’s PlayStation controller.

They feature in the annual They Ate What? competition run by America’s Veterinary Practice News.

Give a dog a bone: A llama rib can be seen in the stomach of a puppy (Picture: Caters)

Dr Robert Blease, from the Animal Health Centre in Stewartsville, New Jersey, said: ‘We asked the owner of a pit bull which was coughing up wood if she’d noticed anything go missing, and the only thing she could think of was a wooden back-scratcher.

‘We radiographed the dog, and sure enough, there it was.

‘She had swallowed the ball end first, and it just slid right down.’

A family’s parrot is inside a pet boa from Kentucky (Picture: Caters)

Another owner feared a lump in her dog’s stomach was a cancerous tumour. It turned out to be a bundle of 70 hair bands belonging to her daughter.

There was a happy ending, too, for all the pets featured in the X-rays… each one had the items, delicately and successfully, removed.